39. Charles Frank Saurer (1959-1961)
Served 2 Years
Charles Saurer was born on September 3, 1916, in New York City and was the son of Charles and LuLu (Weibert) Saurer. Charlie moved to Hicksville and graduated from Hicksville High School. He married Ruth Gebhardt in September of 1942 and was employed as an Aircraft Mechanic at Grumman Aircraft before becoming a Mail Carrier for the United States Postal Service, with a business route in Levittown. Charlie lived his entire life in the family home at 51 First Street. Charlie was a 2nd generation Veteran. His father a veteran of the Spanish-American War, Charlie was a veteran of World War II, serving in the United States Navy aboard the USS Siboney (CVE-112), an aircraft carrier in the Pacific.
Charlie joined Volunteer Hose Company 4 in 1937 and served as Lieutenant and Captain, before being elected 2nd Assistant Chief in 1955 - 1956, 1st Assistant Chief in 1957-1958 and subsequently elected as the 39th Chief in 1959 through 1961. Charlie received 118 of 120 votes cast. His Assistant Chiefs were Walter Werthessen, Walter Telender and John Specht.
His ever-present smile and good cheer made him more than just a fellow fireman, it made him a friend to everyone he met.
During his term in office, the Department would issue new orders that allowed officers’ fire helmets to be painted with each company color on the rim and line officers were color coordinated with “Red” for Captain and “Yellow” for Lieutenants.
Chief Saurer started a campaign to help in the locating of permanently bedridden invalids in the event of a fire in their home. He had stickers made up and available to the residents to be displayed on the window of where the invalid was located. To ensure proper placement he sent out firemen to the homes of those requesting the stickers. This remained in effect until the 1980’s and was morphed into child alert stickers for a short time.
The Hicksville community was making room for widespread progression with the Long Island Railroad train tracks being elevated, and the State Department of Transportation would widen Broadway, from two lanes to four lanes. Many prominent businesses on the West Side of Broadway were destroyed. Businesses were not the only things destroyed on Broadway.
In early December 1959, a little frame dwelling at Jerusalem Avenue and West John Street was the scene of a fire next door to the Empire Diner. The Diner owner confessed to dumping gasoline into the building before igniting it. A local patrolman notified firefighters, and it was feared that an elderly occupant was living there. The patrolman observed someone enter the building. He followed to investigate and as he pushed open a door, there was an explosion, which tore off his clothing and put him in Meadowbrook Hospital. The diner owner was apprehended and booked for second degree arson. Police revealed that the diner owner said he sought to buy the property to provide an enlarged parking area for the Empire Diner.
During the year of 1960, the Hicksville community saw two beloved businesses ravaged by fire. This was Hicksville’s most destructive fire in almost 25 years and caused damage estimated at $300,000. It destroyed the Nassau Press Printing plant, a Tenant office building, and the roof of an adjourning private dwelling on West John Street. 10 firemen were injured or suffered smoke poisoning, and several were removed to Meadowbrook Hospital and then discharged. The alarm was sounded at 5:55 am and the roaring inferno which apparently started in the printing plant in the rear was brought under-control in about two hours. The flames, fanned by the wind, leaped from the printing plant about four feet to a 2-story frame building at 31 West John Street.
When flames swept the garage of Preferred Transmix Concrete Company in the pit at Duffy and Charlotte Avenues, firefighters drove six of the heavy concrete mixer trucks out of the structure and moved about a dozen other trucks in the immediate vicinity out to safety where damage was estimated at $30,000.
Another fire at the Kantor Brothers tire recapping plant on Broadway started in the late afternoon and took many hours with mutual aid assistance from neighboring departments. The damage was estimated at over $350,000 and 27 firefighters were taken to area hospitals. Following the Kantor Bros fire, the 1948 Seagrave maintained by Company 5, was inadvertently left in pump in for several hours causing major malfunctions that would leave the Seagrave unsalvagable.
In September several fire department members were part of a contingent that stood by and welcomed Vice President Richard Nixon who stopped by Hicksville while en route to Grumman Aerospace. Over 10,000 residents greeted him at the Mid Island Plaza. This was the year that Nassau County broke ground on the construction of a Firemen's training facility in Bethpage. Charlie would lead the department services for Ex-Chief Fred Masters Sr., who passed away in March.
Chief Saurer was recognized for his heroism on September 6, 1957, when he arrived at 26 East John Street to find the dwelling with a large volume of fire and smoke coming from the 1st floor. Chief Saurer entered the structure first and led the rescue, confronted by heavy smoke. After removing the occupant from the bedroom, he was met by ex-Chief’s Medard Ofenloch and Arnold Jeanson, and they removed the occupant to the front lawn. It was determined that a mattress started the blaze and Chief Saurer was taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation and released a day later. Chief Saurer would be recognized for his efforts years later.
Charlie was a Charter Member of Volunteer and Exempts Firemen’s Benevolent Association of Hicksville and served as their President 1955 - 1956. He was elected Fire Commissioner from 1964 with 467 votes against his challengers Medard Ofenloch with 390 and Nick Brigandi with 189. Charlie served through 1968 and was Chairman of the Board in 1967.
Chief Saurer was a charter member of the 9th Battalion Fire Chiefs Council and a member of the Nassau County Firemen’s Association, and the Firemen’s Association of the State of New York (FASNY).
In 1997, Chief Saurer was recognized for his 60 years of active service when several fire trucks and nearly 100 members showed up at his residence to which him well.
Chief Saurer passed away on February 1, 1998, and is interred at the Long Island National Cemetery in Calverton New York.
On September 6, 1957, Chief Saurer arrived at 26 East John Street to find the dwelling with a large volume of fire and smoke coming from the 1st floor. Chief Saurer entered the structure first and led the rescue, confronted by heavy smoke. Chief Saurer would be recognized for his effort’s years later.
Chief Saurer, left is shown with his Assistant's Telender and Ofenloch
